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bobcat (mammal) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia
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bobcat

 mammalalso called bay lynx or wildcat (species Lynx rufus)

Main

Bobcat (Lynx rufus). [Credits : Joe Van Wormer/Photo Researchers] bobtailed North American cat (family Felidae), found from southern Canada to southern Mexico. The bobcat is a close relative of the somewhat larger Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis).

A long-legged cat with large paws, a rather short body, and tufted ears, the bobcat is 60–100 cm (24–40 inches) long, excluding the 10–20-cm tail, stands 50–60 cm at the shoulder, and weighs 7–15 kg (15–33 pounds). Its fur, stiffer and less valuable than that of the lynx, is pale brown to reddish with black spots. The underparts are white; the tip of the tail is black above, white below.

Sometimes found in suburban areas, the bobcat is a nocturnal, generally solitary cat equally at home in forests and deserts; it is less inclined than the lynx to climb trees or swim. It feeds on rodents, rabbits, hares, and some birds. Breeding takes place in spring (sometimes a second time later in the year); a litter of one to six kittens is born after a gestation period of about 50 days. Economically, the bobcat is of some value as a furbearer and is important in keeping the numbers of rodents and rabbits under control.

Citations

MLA Style:

"bobcat." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 19 Apr. 2009 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70769/bobcat>.

APA Style:

bobcat. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved April 19, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70769/bobcat

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Encyclopædia Britannica articles, from the full Encyclopædia Britannica database

Charlotte Bobcats
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Student Britannica Articles (Ages 11 and up) on "bobcat (mammal)" from the Britannica Online Student Edition

lynx
The wild cats called lynx have such sharp eyesight that people of ancient times believed they could see even through a stone wall. That is why sharp-sighted people are still referred to as “lynx-eyed.”
Montana State University
1,170-acre (473-hectare) campus in Bozeman, Mont., 135 miles (220 kilometers) west of Billings. A land-grant university situated in the Rocky Mountains, it was founded in 1893 and is one of six units in the Montana University System. Making up the university are Colleges of Agriculture; Letters and Science; Art and Architecture; Business; Education, Health, and Human Development; Engineering; Nursing; and Graduate Studies. Degrees are granted in some 46 areas at the bachelor's degree level, 38 at the master's, and 15 at the doctoral. More than two thirds of the full-time faculty hold doctorates. The academic calendar is divided into semesters.
South Dakota
In the east-river part of South Dakota, the land and rainfall are generally both good for crops. Since the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s, however, there have been intermittent droughts. The west-river section is best suited to livestock raising. Gold and numerous other minerals are produced in commercial quantities in the Black Hills. Most of the state is treeless prairie, but the Black Hills National Forest contains an estimated 3 billion board feet of lumber.
Black Hills
From a distance, the rounded hilltops and heavily forested slopes of the Black Hills, in the west-central United States, present the dark appearance that suggested their name. This isolated and eroded mountain region lies mostly within the Black Hills National Forest, which covers nearly 1.25 million acres (0.5 million hectares) in western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming.
animal
Classification shows relationships between animals in an increasingly specific order, from remotely related members of the same phylum to closely related species within a genus. House cats (Felis catus) and bobcats (Felis rufus) belong to the same genus (Felis) and family (Felidae) but to different species.
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Children's Encyclopedia Articles (Ages 8-11) on "bobcat (mammal)" from the Britannica Online Student Edition

Deciduous Forests(from the biome article)
The deciduous forest biome is found in eastern North America, Europe, and eastern Asia. This biome has cold winters and warm summers. The trees are deciduous, meaning that they shed their leaves in the fall. Deer, bears, bobcats, and squirrels are common to this biome.
Plants and animals(from the Connecticut article)
The southern part of the state is largely an oak forest. In the north are birch, beech, maple, and hemlock trees. Deer are still found in some regions. Other animals include bobcats, foxes, muskrat, squirrels, and beavers. Chickadees, blue jays, and English sparrows are birds that stay in the state year-round.
Plants and animals(from the Death Valley article)
Despite the extreme conditions, Death Valley is home to a variety of plants and animals. The plants include saltgrass, rushes, tamarisks, cacti, and desert wildflowers. Animals found in the valley include rabbits, kangaroo rats, coyotes, and bobcats. The largest animal is the desert bighorn sheep, and there are many lizards. Snakes are rare.
Plants and Animals(from the Arkansas article)
Arkansas has more than 200 species of trees; pine, oak, hickory, maple, gum, ash, cypress, and elm are the most important. In spring the woods are full of flowering dogwood and redbud trees.
Plant and Animal Life(from the California article)
The gigantic California redwood is the official state tree. Some large sequoia trees have been growing for more than 2,000 years.
More Children's Encyclopedia results...
For a definition of "bobcat (mammal)", visit  Merriam-Webster.
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